Contents

Vernacular names in English-speaking nations

The name okra is most often used in the UK,
United States and the Philippines, with a variant pronunciation in
Caribbean English and Nigeria of okro. The word okra is from the
Igboọ́kụ̀rụ̀.[3][4] The plant and its seed pods are also known as "lady's fingers".[5] In various
Bantu languages, okra is called (ki)ngombo or a variant,[6] and this is possibly the origin of the name "
gumbo", used in parts of the United States and the English-speaking Caribbean (via Portuguese quingombo).[7] In India, it is known by the names vendakkai (alternatively bendakkai) and bhindi.[8][9]

Origin and distribution

Whole plant with blossom and immature pod

Okra is an
allopolyploid of uncertain parentage (proposed parents include Abelmoschus ficulneus, A. tuberculatus and a reported "diploid" form of okra). Truly wild (as opposed to naturalised) populations are not known with certainty and the species may be a
cultigen. The geographical origin of okra is disputed, with supporters of South Asian, Ethiopian and West African origins. Supporters of a South Asian origin point to the presence of its proposed parents in that region. Supporters of a West African origin point to the greater diversity of okra in that region.[citation needed] The
Egyptians and
Moors of the 12th and 13th centuries used the
Arabic word for the plant, bamya, suggesting it had come into Egypt from Arabia, but earlier it was probably taken from
Ethiopia to
Arabia. The plant may have entered southwest Asia across the
Red Sea or the
Bab-el-Mandeb straight to the
Arabian Peninsula, rather than north across the
Sahara, or from India. One of the earliest accounts is by a Spanish Moor who visited Egypt in 1216 and described the plant under cultivation by the locals who ate the tender, young pods with
meal.[7] From Arabia, the plant spread around the shores of the
Mediterranean Sea and eastward. The plant was introduced to the
Americas by ships plying the
Atlantic slave trade[10] by 1658, when its presence was recorded in
Brazil. It was further documented in
Suriname in 1686. Okra may have been introduced to southeastern
North America from Africa in the early 18th century. By 1748, it was being grown as far north as
Philadelphia.
Thomas Jefferson noted it was well established in
Virginia by 1781. It was commonplace throughout the
Southern United States by 1800, and the first mention of different
cultivars was in 1806.[7]

Botany and cultivation

Latitudinal cross-section of the okra pod

The species is a
perennial, often cultivated as an
annual in temperate climates, and often grows to around 2 metres (6.6 ft) tall. It is related to such species as
cotton,
cocoa, and
hibiscus. The
leaves are 10–20 centimetres (3.9–7.9 in) long and broad, palmately lobed with 5–7 lobes. The
flowers are 4–8 centimetres (1.6–3.1 in) in diameter, with five white to yellow petals, often with a red or purple spot at the base of each petal. The
fruit is a capsule up to 18 centimetres (7.1 in) long with
pentagonal cross-section, containing numerous
seeds.

Abelmoschus esculentus is cultivated throughout the tropical and warm temperate regions of the world for its fibrous fruits or pods containing round, white seeds. It is among the most heat- and drought-tolerant vegetable species in the world and will tolerate
soils with heavy
clay and intermittent moisture, but frost can damage the pods. In cultivation, the seeds are soaked overnight prior to planting to a depth of 1–2 centimetres (0.39–0.79 in).
Germination occurs between six days (soaked seeds) and three weeks. Seedlings require ample water. The seed pods rapidly become fibrous and woody and, to be edible as a
vegetable, must be harvested when immature, usually within a week after
pollination.[11] Okra is available in two varieties, green and red. Red okra carries the same flavor as the more popular green okra and differs only in color. When cooked, the red okra pods turn green.[12]

Leaves and seeds

Okra leaves may be cooked in a similar way to the greens of
beets or
dandelions.[15] The leaves are also eaten raw in salads. Okra seeds may be roasted and ground to form a caffeine-free substitute for
coffee.[7] When importation of coffee was disrupted by the
American Civil War in 1861, the Austin State Gazette said, "An acre of okra will produce seed enough to furnish a
plantation with coffee in every way equal to that imported from
Rio."[16]

Greenish-yellow edible okra
oil is pressed from okra seeds; it has a pleasant taste and odor, and is high in
unsaturated fats such as
oleic acid and
linoleic acid.[17] The oil content of some varieties of the seed is about 40%. At 794 kg/ha, the yield was exceeded only by that of
sunflower oil in one trial.[18] A 1920 study found that a sample contained 15% oil.[19] A 2009 study found okra oil suitable for use as a
biofuel.[20]